1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the isomerization of linalyl halides.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Representative of the prior art is the description given in the U.S. Pat. No. 2,104,789 to Carothers. The prior art class deals mainly with simply compounds such as the chloro and dichloro butenes. Generally, the reactions are carried out in the presence of water, methanol, ethanol, or acetic acid. In spite of the availability of these known methods of isomerizing allylic halides, there has remained a need for processes operating at low temperature and effective for more complex halides which are heat-sensitive and are prone to solvolysis in the presence of water, methanol, and acetic acid. The method of the present invention is such an improvement over the prior art, requiring relatively low temperatures and short isomerization times and employing a relatively inexpensive catalyst which can be recovered and reused many times, and which does not promote solvolysis.